writer. photographer. designer. educator. traveller.

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About

(short)

I am a creative and educator born in Wales and raised in both New Zealand and the UK. Educated in the visual arts I turned to writing in the nineties, composing books and contributing to print and online media mainly in the field of lifestyle, travel and music (you can view the list of MEDIA I’ve worked with opposite). I am an all round creative skilled in: design, photography and content as well as editing skills in words and pictures. In addition I’ve run a parallel career in education and taught Inter-Cultural Communications at university level. I live and work globally.

Born in Wales in what is now a hotel overlooking a roundabout (from which spiral many roads) seemed an almost natural precursor to what would become a nomadic existence. The journey then took me through Pacific darkness to backward seasons and shifts in hours and time. I refer of course to New Zealand which left its mark by shaping me before casting me back home. Perhaps unsurprisingly my education and cultural identity suffered from the effect of constant continental drift! With many interests and influences drawn from arts, memory and travel – a ‘normal’ career path was never likely to occur.

Like Brian Eno, my education evolved from visual arts to include writing poems, stories and articles which would eventually morph into journalism, which co-exists with my return to visual work – as both photographer and designer. However, unlike Eno, sound was never pursued as most of what I wanted to create already existed. Hearing colour in music enhances my relationship with it in terms of sound and visuals, but Synesthesia aside, my only involvement with music is by the written word with publications both physical and digital (All Music Guide as well as lyrics for Portugal’s O Atlas and American singer/songwriter Peter Kingsbery). My work has allowed me to cover music and film, hotels, restaurants, travel, transport and gadgets for among others China Daily, Global Blue, Time Out (Istanbul) and with Qatar Airways inflight magazine.

The books that were born via my own publisher ‘equivocal’ are well documented. Still, I’m proud to have produced work which has been innovative and contemporary, being among the first to feature ‘strong language’ warnings, DVD style ‘making of’ featurettes and in some cases hidden content. While my ideas for multi-disciplinary projects with musicians, animators and film-makers have never materialised I have at the very least been humbled by personal correspondence with luminaries such as musicians: Robert Fripp, Iva Davies (Icehouse), Cocteau Twins, Lloyd Cole, Wang Chung and Jon Farriss (INXS) as well as Graphic artist Keith Breeden (Scritti Politti, Pink Floyd) and writer Peter Moore.

In addition to my creative work, I’ve run a parallel career in education teaching Inter-Cultural Communications at university level. I’m no less fascinated or inquisitive about the world now than I was as a youngster seeing the Arabian dunes, the mountains of Europe, the blue pools of California or the unearthly landscapes of China from the air. So far I’ve been fortunate enough to visit over 40 countries on 5 continents living in a ‘marae’ and old railway station in New Zealand, a bookstore in Paris, and a ‘lojman’ in Turkey. After five years’ in China I decided to rip it up and start again. I live and work globally,